Machine for cutting printed wrappers



Feb-6, 1934- R. B. DONNELLEY El 51. 1,945,457

MACHINE FOR CUTTING PRINTED WRAPPERS Filed Feb. 19,1930 Z SheetS Sheet 1Feb. 6, 1934. ,R. B. DONNELLEY ET AL 1,946,457

Patented Feb. 6, 1934 UNITED STATES MACHINE FOR CUTTING PRINTED WRAPPERSRobert B. Donnelley, Chicago, and John F. Hawley, Oak Park, 111.

Application February 19, 1930. Serial No. 429,538

6 Claim.

This invention relates in general to the wrapping of packages and hasmore particular reference to the provision of an improved method andapparatus for severing predetermined portions E3 of a sheet or strip ofpaper to be used in the packaging so that displays carried by the papermay be accurately and definitely located in the wrapping.

The invention has for its principal object the lit provision of animproved method and apparatus (and also an-improved supply sheet) forproviding individual printed wrappers, definite display portions ofwhich may be uniformly and automatically arranged in predeterminedposition on 1d the package by usual or preferred wrapping machines.

An important object of the present invention is the accomplishment ofthe accurate arrangement of the display portion of package wrappers uponthe package without requiring perforation or other formation of thematerial of the paper sheet to accomplish the desired registration.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentas it is better under- Qd stood from the following description, which,taken in connection with the accompanying drawings discloses a preferredembodiment thereof.

Referring to the drawings,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of an end of a machine or apparatus forsevering a large sheet or strip of paper into individual wrappers;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are sections taken respectively substantially upon thelines 3--3, Hand 5-5 of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 6 isa section taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 7 is a schematic view, showing the wiring diagram.

For the purpose of illustrating the present invention, there is shown inFigs. 1 and 2 so much of a machine in which it is or may be embodied asto permit understanding of the invention. The partial machine thereshown-discloses the entire sheet cutting mechanism and its control. Thiscutting mechanism and control may form a part of a package wrappingmachine.

The operative parts are mounted upon a support 11, having a tableportion 12 across which a sheet or strip of paper 13 is adapted to bemoved. The strip or sheet of paper 13 conveniently is originallyprovided in a roll 14 adapted to be rctatably supported at 15 inupstanding bearing brackets 16. This sheet or strip of paper is providedwith display portions or designs 17 printed thereon and which are to bearranged in predetermined location upon each of the packages wrapped.The sheet or strip carries also cutting. indicia 18 for controlling theseverance of the sheet as it passes across the support 11, all as willbe presently more fully described.

Feed rollers appropriately arranged are provided to feed the sheet orstrip of paper across the support, a pair of feed rollers beingindicated on the drawings by reference characters 19 and 66 21.

Severance of the sheet or strip into individual wrappers is accomplishedin the instant embodiment by conjointly rotating or rotatable cuttingcylinders 22 and 23 having companion cutting dies or shear members 24and 25. It is intended that when the apparatus is operating upon relatively large areas of paper provided with display portions, this cuttingmeans will be operated and controlled in accordance with the location ofthe 35 display portions themselves and through the primary agency of theprinted indicia 18. This printed indicia is so arranged with respect tothe display portions that control of the cutting means by the locationof the indicia will accurately arrange the display portions upon thepredetermined desired part of the wrapper.

To accomplish this, a control is provided for the cutting means whichincludes a light sensitive device in turn controlling an electriccircuit which determines accurately the occasions of the rotation of thecutting means. The light sensitive device is preferably a photo-electriccell of known construction and internal wiring. As shown on the drawingsit comprises a source of light 26, which is or may be an electric lightbulb arranged to reflect light onto the paper and from it to a lightsensitive or photo-electric cell 27, as indicated by the arrows 28 inFig. 3.

The electric light bulb 26 and the cell 27 are preferably arranged inindividual compartments 29 and 31 of a housing 32 carried by an arm 33from one of the side bearings 34 of the sheet feeding roll 19. Thishousing is mounted above the path of travel of the indicia 18, whichindicia is preferably merely printed black dots or spots upon thepaper,a such dot or spot being provided for each intended cutting operation.As each dot or spot passes beneath the housing and across the reflectedlight from the bulb 26 to the cell 2'7, the cutting mechanism isconnected to the power to perform a cutting operation through electricaldevices to be presently described.

The two cutting rolls 22 and 23 are geared together as indicated at 35and are fixed on on the presented hub face of the pulley 38 by a spring44.

The dog 42 is movable laterally of the plane of the pulley 38 in adovetailed slot in the clutch 41 and is provided with a taperedtransverse slot 45 generally in registration with a circumferential slot46 in the clutch. A lever 47 having a vertical movement is pivoted at 48in a lateral extension 49 o f the adjacent bearing 51 for the shaft 36.This lever is adapted to be moved down away from the clutch by asolenoid 52 and a spring 53 acts to press it into the slot 46 and intothe slot 45 when rotation of the cutting mechanism presents the dog 42to the lever. a dot or spot presents itself to the housing 32, thesolenoid is energized, the spring 53 contracted, and the lever moveddownwardly from the position shown in Fig. l. Thereupon, the clutch dog42 is pressed by the spring 44 into clutching engagement with the teeth43 on the hub of pulley 38' and the cutting instrumentalities arerotated. Before this rotation is complete the spot has passed thehousing 32, the solenoid 52 is deenergized, and the lever 47 is moved upby the spring 53 in position to withdraw the dog 'at the end of acomplete revolution.

A. brake 54 is or may be provided to cause prompt termination of therotation of the cutting mechanism as soon as the dog is withdrawn.

Reference character 55 indicates a gear which,

is or may be provided in mesh with one of the gears or pinions 56provided on the shafts of the feed rollers. The gear 55 carries a stud57 adapted to engage and move one arm 58 of a bell crank pivoted at 59on the support '11, the other arm 61 of which is arranged to extend overand depress the free end of lever 47. The arrangement of these parts issuch that the lever 47 is depressed at the instant the dog 42 passes thelever 4'7 so that the cutting mechanism is continuously operative. Thislast described mechanism is provided in order that the cutting mechanismmay operate upon unspotted paper and when the accurate cutting withrespect to particular displays is not contemplated. When the control ofthe cutting mechanism is to be accomplished by the photo-electric cell,the bellcrank is merely removed from its operative position. The cuttingmechanism is thus arrangeable to cut at predetermined regular intervalsand arrangeable also for accurate control in accordance with thedisplays upon the paper.

The electric wiring is schematically shown in Fig; 7. The source ofpower is indicated by reference character 62. From this source of powerone line wire 63 leads through a switch 64 to the winding 65 of thesolenoid. From this winding, a wire 66 leads to a movable contact 6'?adapted for engagement with a contact 68 in turn connected by a wire'69with. source of power 62. A' wire 71 leads to lamp 26 from one side ofthe source of power 62 and a wire '72 completes the lamp circuit to theother side of the source of power. The photo-electric cell, generallyindicated at '73, is connectedinto a circuit including a solenoidwinding 74 for'controlling movable contact 67. The details of the wiringof the photo electric cell are not believed nece sa y o a Each timeunderstanding of the present invention, it being understood thatalteration in the reflected light to the cell 73 accomplishes a changein the current flowing through solenoid 74 and consequent movement ofthe contact 67 into engagement with the contact 68 and then back to itsseparated position.

It is thought that this invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description, and it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction andarrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the formhereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

We claim:

1. An apparatus for preparing a web of wrapping material for packaging,comprising in combination, a support across which a relatively largearea of wrapping material may be moved, cutting means associated withsaid support and a mechanism for controlling the operation of saidcutting means, said mechanism being arrangeable both to cut said web ofwrapping material at periodic regular intervals and at intervalsdetermined by indicia arranged upon said material.

2. An apparatus for preparing a web of wrapping material for packaging,comprising in combination, a support across which a relatively largearea of wrapping material may be moved, cutting means associated withsaid support and a mechanism for controlling said cutting meansincluding a light sensitive device to effect cutting oi. the material inaccordance with indicia the material at regular periodic intervals andwithout regard to said indicia.

3. An apparatus for preparing a web of wrapping material for packaging,comprising in combination a support across which a relatively large areaof wrapping material may be passed, a rollmounted above said support, acutting blade carried by said roll, a continuously rotating powermember, a mechanical power transmission operatively arranged betweensaid power member and said roll, and an electric control for said powertransmission comprising magnetic means for connecting said powertransmission with the roll to initiate the rotation of said roll and aphotoelectric cell controlling said magnetic means in accordance withindicia on said material and means independent of said electromagneticmeans and photoelectric cell and indicia forautomatically interruptingthe rotation of the roll after the cutting blade has operated on-thematerial.

4. An apparatus for preparing web material provided with indiciaportions for wrapping purposes, including means for feeding the web,normally stationary rotary cutter means disposed in the path of saidweb, means for actuating said 5. An apparatus for preparing'web materialprovided with indicia poritons for packaging, in-

110 upon the same, and means effecting cutting of eluding normallystationary rotary cutter means disposed in the path of said web, meansfor actuating said cutter means, means for feeding the web operableindependently of said rotary cutter means, a lamp, a photo-electric cellwithin the field of illumination of said lamp and closely adjacent thepath of said inclicia portions, a source of electric energy for saidlamp, an electric relay controlled by said photo-electric cell upon thepassage of an indicia portion 01! the web adjacent thereto, an electriccontrol element for the rotary cutter actuating means, said controlelement being located in a circuit containing the same' source of energyas said lamp and being controlled by the relay in the circuit 0! thephotoelectric cell, and means for automatically disconnecting saidactuating meansirom the cutter after a single rotation of the latter.

6. An apparatus for preparing web material provided with indicia'portions for packaging, including feeding means for the web. rotatablecutting means disposed in the path of said web, means for actuating saidcutting means, means for normally holding said actuating meansinoperative, a lamp, 9. photo-electric cell within the field ofillumination of said lamp and closely adjacent the path of said indiciaportions, a relay controlled by said cell, a source of electric energyfor said lamp, and a relay connected with said holding means for therotatable cutting means, said holding means being in a normally open circuit having as source of energy the same source which also supplies thelamp with current and being closed by energization of the relay of thephoto-electric cell upon passage of an indicia portion adjacent thereto,to withdraw said holding means from engagement with said actuating meanssaid holding and said actuating means being such as to permit but onerevolution of said cutting means.

ROBERT E. DONNELLEY. JOHN F. HAWLEY.

